Sporting Clube de Goa have completed their foreign quota for the I-League after concluding negotiations with Trinidad and Tobago midfielder Densill Theobald and Nigerian defender Loveday Okechukwu.
Both players turned up for Royal Wahingdoh in the last edition of I-League and were responsible for their stunning third-place finish on debut. They will join Nigerian striker Odafa Okolie and Syrian midfielder Mahmoud Amna.
According to club sources, Loveday has already arrived in Goa and had his first training session with the team on Friday, while Theobald, who played for Dempo Sports Club during his first stint in India, is expected later this week.
"We will not have Densill for the first game since the transfer window opens on January 15 but we will definitely have him here before the I-League starts. Both these players proved themselves in the last edition of I-League (with Royal Wahingdoh) and we are excited to have them," said a Sporting Clube official.
Initially, Sporting Clube had agreed a deal with and NorthEast United FC captain Miguel Garcia but the Portuguese defender injured himself in the first match of the Indian Super League (ISL) and has not recovered from his injury.
Club officials said they had foreign options at the back but decided to keep faith with Loveday, thanks to positive feedback from players and officials.
The only worry for Loveday could be match practice, or the lack of it, as the Nigerian defender has nit played a competitive match since the last edition of I-League which ended six months ago.
Theobald, however, has captained Trinidad and Tobago -- also called Soca Warriors -- in recent international matches and had taken a transfer from Royal Wahingdoh to Caledonia AIA.
The Goa Pro League champions had earlier confirmed the signing of Arindam Bhattacharya and D Ravanan (both FC Pune City), and have now secured the services of Seriton Fernandes, Subhashish, Nicholas Fernandes (all on loan from Churchill Brothers) and Fulgancio Cardozo (Calangute Association).
Sporting Clube de Goa open their I-League campaign against East Bengal at the Nehru Stadium in Fatorda on January 10.